Hello Friends,
Are you living a life full of joy and contentment? Do you desire to be a woman who radiates joy and happiness, and gives others a reason to smile?
I don’t know about you, but I want to be joyful woman. I want others to feel happier simply by being in my presence. Sometimes choosing joy each day is a struggle. There may be days when you and I don’t even feel like being joyful. Sometimes it’s just easier to be grumpy and unhappy!
But that’s not what God wants for our lives. In Philippians 4:4 we are told to “Rejoice in the Lord always: and again I say, Rejoice.”
As Christian women, we ought to radiate true Christlike joy.
I’ve come to love this little, three letter word. It’s also my middle name! Over the past few years, I’ve read several wonderful books about joy that have taught me so much more about this little word, and have helped me gain a better understanding of true joy and happiness. Today I want to share these 7 wonderful books about joy with you. I hope that you will choose one (or more) of these books to add to your reading list and book shelf. May we all learn to be women who radiate true joy!
7 Wonderful Books About Joy
Paul’s Epistle to the Philippians
The first “book” on this list of books about joy comes right from the very Word of God. This little book in the New Testament is a gem. It’s actually a “thank you” letter from Paul to the church in Philippi. From the first to the last chapter, you will find variations of the words rejoice, and joy, all throughout this letter. That just goes to show that gratitude does indeed bring more joy to our lives. I hope you will read, study, and learn to love this little book of the Bible. In it you will find the biblical secrets to true joy!
I’ve mentioned this book before is some of my blog posts. This is a gold mine of helpful and biblical advice for Christian women who want to live joyful and godly lives. Happiness does not come from perfect circumstances, material possessions, or the things we think we “need” to be happy. True joy no happiness comes from walking with the Lord and following his will and way for our lives. This book talks about cultivating a meek and quiet spirit, conquering anger, overcoming disappointments, forgiving others, and so much more! Besides the book of Philippians, if you choose to read any book on this list… I hope it’s this one!
Where to Get It: Ironwood Book Store
Bible Version: King James
This is a helpful commentary/study guide on the book of Philippians. The author writes with a very practical and easy-to-understand writing style. The chapters include topics such as: common joy-stealers, how to increase your joy, the secret to contentment and more! If you want to learn more about joy from the book of Philippians, this would be a helpful companion.
Where to Get It: Amazon it’s only $1.99 on Kindle!
Bible Version: Various
Choosing Gratitude: Your Journey to Joy
This is an incredibly helpful, and practical book! While the main topic of this book is gratitude, the underlying theme throughout the book is… Joy! Those who learn how to be grateful and implement gratitude in their daily lives, are going to be more joyful people because of it! This book is full of practical “how-to’s” and ways to apply what you learn. There is also a 30-day gratitude challenge included in the back of the book. This is one of my top favorite books and one I would recommend to anyone who wants to have more joy in their life.
Where to Get It: Amazon
Bible Version: Various
When I first read this book (several years ago) the unique style of the author didn’t suit me very well. But by the end of this book, I had learned so much more about gratitude, joy, and appreciating the little things in life. While I do not agree with the author about everything (and her writing style is very different) this book is helpful if you want to be joyful in whatever situation or circumstance life has brought your way.
Where to Get It: Amazon
Bible Version: New Living Translation (And others)
At first glance, this book may not sound like a book about joy. Actually, it’s not really about joy at all. Yet, there is something about this book that seems to radiate joy anyway… The kind of joy that comes from abandoning everything for the sake of following God’s calling on your life. Katie Davis (now Katie Majors!) left her home in America to live and serve God in Uganda. This book is Katie’s story of living in Uganda where she is still serving the Lord and caring for many, many people, including 13 girls that she adopted! It’s absolutely amazing reading about Katie’s life in Uganda, and seeing the joy and fulfillment she has found in such a poor, dirty, and desolate country. This book will challenge you, bring you to tears, and teach you that the most wonderful kind of joy and fulfillment comes from serving the Lord and pointing others to Him!
Where to Get It: Amazon
Bible Version: Various
This is a new book in my collection, and one that I’m actually still reading. This book was written after the author’s personal battle with breast cancer. At the very beginning of her cancer diagnosis she decided to fight back with joy. This book contains all the lessons she learned about joy during her experiences with cancer, surgery, chemotherapy, hair loss and more. Written in a down to earth yet very personal way…. Margaret Feinburg inspires her readers to fight their own unique challenges, circumstances, and fears, with joy. This book is very easy to read and very helpful, practical, and inspirational.
Where to Get It: Amazon
Bible Version: Various
Final Thoughts
There you have it, my friend! Those are some of my favorite books, and each and every one can help you grow in your journey to joy. I hope you will try to read at least one of these books…. At the very least, give Philippians a read sometime in the near future. 🙂
Related Posts To Read:
Thanks for reading this post – if it was a helpful to you, please share it with someone else who could use a little more joy in their life! You can share this post via Facebook, Twitter, or Pinterest.
What are your favorite books about joy? 🙂
Thank you for all the wonderful suggestions! I’ve done mini-studies on Philippians a number of times, and I’ve also read Kisses from Katie and Be Joyful, I believe, as well. I’ve heard SO much about Choosing Gratitude but have yet to read it. It’s definitely near the top of my list to get and read next!
I love how your middle name is Joy… mine is Grace! 😉 (I obviously go by my middle name) I haven’t actually ever done an in depth study on grace though. I need to add that to my list of things to study as well 🙂
You are welcome! I’m glad you’ve read some of these ☺ Yes, I do hope you get to read Choosing Gratitude. It’s one that I really need to read again!
A topical study on Grace would be really great ☺
Wow, I have already read One Thousands Gifts and Epistle to the Phillippians. I would like to try your suggestions. Would you like to post some books about biblical femininity?
What application do you use to do the title images for your articles? All are so sweet. 😊
Yes, I might share some more books about femininity in the future… next month the topic will be on modesty.
I use canva for my title images and Amazon for the images of the books.